'Victor Meldrews' swell complaints to council

More than 1,500 complaints were received by the council in 2006/7, an increase on the previous year. But council bosses say the numbers are misleading - because many of the complaints came from the same people. They claim most people appear to be happy with the way the council is run.

Thirty two complaints about the actions of council staff came from just three people - and one person alone submitted 23 complaints about the closure of a luncheon club. “The figures are particularly skewed by a tiny minority of complainants submitting an unusually high number of complaints,” says a report to the council’s Cabinet.

“There was a general increase in the number of people complaining since last year, but it is felt that the 2005/6 figures were exceptionally low. While the number of complaints regarding the quality of service went up, most of this increase was due to individuals submitting more complaints.

“For example the closure of one luncheon club and one particularly unhappy complainant have had a significant influence on the number of complaints received.”

Most complaints were about 2010 Rotherham Ltd, the Arms Length Manage-ment Organisation now dealing with housing services. There was also an increase in the number of complaints about Children’s and Young Persons Services and Adult Services. But the council says most of the complaints are now dealt with at the first stage. Around 25 per cent of complaints received were upheld.

Last year the council decided to employ its own dedicated Complaints Officer to look at the way grumbles from the public are handled. It also introduced training for some staff after it was revealed there had been an increase in the number of complaints made to the Local Government Ombudsman.

It now says that its staff are more geared up to handle complaints and are more effective at passing issues to the relevant manager.